Growing Up
by TCGeek
Summary: Watching their twins grow older day by day, Derek and Angie come to learn just how clever they really are. Two chaptered requestfic.
1. Chapter 1

**So, right as I'm finishing this story, FFnet decides its a good idea to do maintenance on the documents portion, so I can't upload it. Its on my DeviantArt if you happen to watch me there... but if not, then welcome to this story! Sorry its late!  
**

**Its a request for a DevArt buddy of mine, about Derek, Angie, and their kids. Since I'm not ready to give the names or genders of their children due to the fact that I in no way want to spoil "First Comes Love...", I borrowed twins Alex and Nila from ITB.**

**This is a two chaptered story - so I'll be around with the next one shortly.**

**Enjoy! **

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Besides the anticipation of getting to meet their twins for the very first time, something that excited Derek and Angie was wondering what traits each of their children was going to inherit and from which parent. 

As babies they could already tell that their son Alex looked like his mother, while daughter Nila was the splitting image of Derek. But as the years passed and they grew, the Stiles' were happy to see that each child was the perfect combination of the two of them – something they had created, together.

Though even more interesting than being able to notice the physical transformations of their children as they grew was getting to see their personalities in action – something that kept the both of them guessing.

But the thing they loved the most was getting to see their children grow – to experience life and make memories that would last their whole life through.

That is, when they were making _cute_ memories – not ones that left one or both parents physically injured.

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"Mommy…?"

With a smile, Angie turned around from scrubbing the kitchen counter to see her four year old son Alex staring up at her with his bright green eyes. Even though it was certainly not new, being called 'mommy' never failed to make Angie smile.

She bent down to his level, pulling him into her lap as she sat down on the tile, kissing his cheek.

"Are you okay Alex?" she asked, noticing her son's concerned expression.

"Yes mommy." he said, looking up at her. "I just… I just really would like to have a cookie."

She smiled at him and lifted him off of her lap, setting him onto his own two feet.

"You're so cute I almost want to say yes… but it's time for bed soon – you can have a cookie tomorrow."

Angie turned around and continued scrubbing the counter, hearing her son whine. Just as he was turning to leave the room Derek walked in, almost bowling Alex over.

"Woops – sorry bud, didn't see you there!" he said, reaching down and lifting his son into his arms. Angie turned around and smiled briefly at the sight, looking past them and checking on daughter Nila who was still at the table eating her dinner.

"Dad?" Alex asked, looking his father in the eyes. "Can I have a cookie?"

"Alex, what did I JUST say…?" Angie started, turning around and glaring at her son.

"Sure bud—" Derek replied, lifting a cookie off the counter and placing it in his son's hands, just as he set him down on the ground.

"Derek!" Angie said, angry glare now centered at her husband. "I just told him no!"

Derek just blinked his eyes in response. "How was I supposed to know?"

"Because – you know that if I tell them no they come running to you…" she said, feeling Derek walk up behind her and wrap his arms around her waist. The angry stare she had dissipated, a smile taking its place as she felt gentle kisses on her neck.

"Dereeekkk…" she said in a whisper, closing her eyes. "They're still awake…" she said, her speech cutting of with a light moan.

"Not for long…" he whispered in her ear, giving her a kiss on her cheek. "And besides… Nila is still eating and Alex is preoccupied with that cookie I wasn't supposed to give him."

With a giggle, Angie turned around and slapped Derek playfully in the arm. "You're such a jerk…" she said with a smile, hugging him. "Seems almost like karma that it's your night to put them to bed…"

Derek sighed. "I love those kids – but why do I always get bedtime duty on the days that they're hyper?"

With a laugh, Angie pulled away and continued cleaning. "Maybe if you didn't feed them cookies all the time…" she said, laughing harder when she heard her husband scoff behind her.

"Don't worry honey…" she said with a mischievous grin. "If you can get those kids into bed before I fall asleep, I'll make it worth your while."

Derek stood rooted in place as his wife sent a sexy smile over her shoulder, before he snapped into action.

"Okay kids, time for bed!" he exclaimed with a clap of his hands, leaving the kids to groan but Angie to giggle.

"Daddy? I'm not done eating!"

Derek sat at the table next to his daughter Nila, ruffling her short brown hair gently.

"Yeah Dad, me either!" Alex said, cookie crumbs all around his mouth.

"You both are almost done…" Derek replied with a smile. "Finish up and then we'll go read stories."

Nila, who was always a bit of a slow eater, started to shovel her food in her mouth at a rapid pace – she loved storytime, especially with daddy.

Alex, watching his sister closely, started to gobble up his cookie as well. Derek just smiled at the two of them and their competitive nature, knowing that it was something they had definitely inherited from their mother.

"I'll be right back you two…" Derek said, casting another glance back at his wife who just raised her eyebrows suggestively. Remembering her promise he walked quickly back to their kids' rooms, rummaging around for pajamas for them to wear and books to read.

Finishing her cleaning, Angie flipped off the light in the kitchen just as she heard a loud snap come from their office. She closed her eyes and shuddered, mindful not to let the kids see her disgust.

"Derek?" she called across the house.

"Yeah?" was the reply from Nila's room, Derek nowhere in Angie's sight.

"We uh… just got another one." she called out in the vaguest way possible, scratching at the back of her head. Suddenly Derek's head popped out of Nila's doorway, holding a pair of pink pajamas.

"Really?" he whined, sighing when Angie nodded, biting her lip.

A week ago that day, Angie had been playing with the twins in their living room when Nila began to freak out, spotting a mouse over by the kitchen. Since then both children were afraid of seeing the little critters again, and both parents had to be very careful not to mention their unwanted guests as they were killed by sporadically set traps, or else there was no calming the children down.

"Alright, I'll take care of it…" he replied. "Thank God the exterminator is coming tomorrow, eh?"

"No kidding…"

As Derek moved back into his daughter's bedroom, Angie's attention snapped to her left as Alex let out a loud scream, followed by muffled cries.

"Alex?" she asked urgently, running over to him. "Alex, what's wrong?!"

The boy's mouth was clamped shut, tears rolling down his slightly chubby cheeks as Angie approached him, her attention turning to her daughter.

"Nila, what happened?" she asked, picking up Alex and sitting in his chair, cradling him in her lap as he continued to cry.

"I don't know mommy…" the girl said, pointing at the cookie. "He was just eating his cookie and then he started crying…"

Angie's frown deepened at the story, her attention turning back to her son as he continued to cry, tiny hands clutching onto her shirt and pulling himself closer to her.

Derek walked out into the living room, his own smile turning into a frown as he saw the sight.

"What's going on?" he asked, setting the kids pajamas down on the couch.

"I don't know…" was Angie's reply, her attention still on her son. "Alex… Alex honey, mommy needs to see what's going on. Open your mouth please…"

Angie's request was met with a furious shake of the head from the boy, whose own expression was a cross between pain and fear. His cries continued to be muffled by his closed mouth, his disobedience doing nothing to help the bad feeling Angie had about the situation. She turned her head up to look at Derek who just sent her back a shrug, still getting the twins' things ready for bed.

Just as she looked back at Alex, Angie's eyes widened when blood began to seep out of the corner of his tightly closed mouth, staining his pale skin a dark red.

"Oh my God…!" Angie exclaimed, practically throwing herself forward to the middle of the table and grabbing a napkin from the holder, holding it under Alex's chin as more blood began to pour out. She sat him up quickly, his head still resting just under her collarbone.

"Whoa!" Derek exclaimed at his wife's panicked outburst, rushing over just as Nila began to cry.

"Daddy… what's wrong with Alex?" she cried, scared for her brother.

"It's alright sweetie…" Derek said, sweeping the girl up into his arms as he continued to stare at his son, wondering what on earth was wrong with him. "Alex is okay…" he reassured, now standing next to Angie and rubbing Nila's back as she cried on his shoulder, turned away from the sight. He pulled his daughter's previously occupied chair up next to his wife and son and sat down.

"Alex, you need to open your mouth!" Angie exclaimed, receiving another shake of his head as an answer.

Though Derek would never admit it out loud for fear of sleeping on the couch, he knew inside that his son's stubbornness only came from one place.

"He's not going to open Angie, you're just going to have to deal with him how I deal with you when you're stubborn…" Derek said, scooting his chair closer to them.

Angie scowled. "And how's that?"

"Force him to do it anyway…" he replied, reaching forward. Slipping his index finger in the non-bloody corner of his son's mouth, Derek moved it to the middle and then slid his thumb in underneath the other finger, using both of them to pry the child's mouth open. At the sight of even more blood, Angie reached forward again and grabbed another napkin, pressing it firmly into Alex's lower jaw. She used the pinky of her other hand to clear out the cookie remnants as the boy continued to cry, fighting the both of them as they continued to work on him.

"Maybe he blew a blood vessel?" Derek asked, watching as blood soaked through yet another napkin.

"I don't know – kind of looks like maybe he ripped his frenulum…" Angie said, forcing a smile as Nila turned her head towards her and Alex, tears still on her cheeks as she rested her head back on Derek's shoulder.

"What's a frennelum?" she asked, pronunciation quite close but still a little off.

"Look at daddy honey…" Derek said, leaning his head back until she looked at him. He opened his mouth and lifted his tongue, pointing to the small strip of membrane that attached from underneath the tongue to the bottom of his mouth. "That's it right there…" he said, closing his mouth. He watched at Nila opened her own mouth, feeling around for her own with her tiny finger.

Angie continued clearing out chunks of cookie from Alex's mouth, her forehead furrowing when she hit something hard with her pinky.

"What?" Derek asked, watching as she tilted Alex's head to the side and fished the object out with her pinky, holding it up in the air for them all to see.

Derek laughed and sat back in his chair with relief, cradling his daughter close to him, his chin resting on the top of her head. "And you thought it was his frenulum…" he joked, watching his wife scowl at him.

"YOU thought he blew a blood vessel! Mine was much closer…" she retaliated, dropping her scowl in favor of a laugh.

Though they were prepared for any emergency that may come their way, Derek and Angie had admitted before that being a doctor and a nurse led to a certain elevated amount of paranoia when it came to their children's illnesses, something that they were experiencing yet again.

"Whush wong wif me?" Alex asked, muffled by the napkin pressed into his lower jaw. Angie flipped the object from in between her fingers to her palm, stretching out her hand in front of her son's face.

"You just lost your first tooth, Alex…" she said, looking over at Derek who just smiled, still rubbing Nila's back.

"I did what?" he asked clearly, as Angie had removed the napkin and plopped him in the chair to go get a wet piece of gauze instead. Still unsure of what was going on, Nila remained in her father's lap, tiny arms squeezing around his torso for comfort.

"Go like this Alex…" Derek said, opening his mouth and tilting his head downward to show his son his bottom row of teeth. The boy did as instructed, watching his father smile upon noticing the gaping hole smack in the middle of his lower row of teeth.

"You lost your first tooth – didn't you notice it was loose?" Derek asked, leaning forward and looking into his son's mouth, the hole partially blocked by another forming pool of blood.

"It was wiggly…" Alex responded, tongue now probing the place of his missing tooth.

"How come you didn't say anything then?"

Derek's question was met with a shrug right before Alex was lifted off the chair and Angie sat down, pressing the gauze into the hole as she plopped him back in her lap.

"I want muh toof back…!" Alex said, starting to cry again. Angie shifted him in her hold and he curled up against her, head resting against her chest as she hugged him tighter and kissed the top of his blonde head – rocking gently back and forth.

"It's okay honey…" she cooed in a reassuring tone. "You'll grow another one, and that one will be with you forever… and since you lost this one, you'll get a surprise from the Tooth Fairy tonight."

Derek watched as the worried expression on Alex's face faded, his body still curled up against his mother.

Nila sat up in Derek's lap, looking at Angie with interest.

"Mommy, what's a tooth fairy?" she inquired, brown eyes sparkling with wonder.

Angie and Derek traded a sly smile – both fond of their own childhood memories, they were both excited to start them with their own children.

"Well honey…" Angie started, still rocking her son. "The tooth fairy comes when you lose a baby tooth. Before he goes to bed, Alex will put his tooth under his pillow, and while he's sleeping the tooth fairy will come and leave him something special for it."

"Like a puppy?" Nila inquired, earning a small chuckle from both parents.

"You have quite the imagination, you know that?" Derek said, tickling Nila's sides and producing a shrieking giggle from her.

"No honey, not a puppy…" he said once she relaxed, her eyes now turned up toward him with an expression that he couldn't help but smile lovingly at. "The tooth fairy leaves money for your teeth - money you can put in the brand new piggy banks you just got from Grandma."

"I want to lose more teef!" Alex exclaimed through the gauze still in his mouth.

Derek and Angie laughed.

"You gotta lose them one at a time, bud…" Angie explained gently, removing the gauze to check the bleeding. "If you don't, then you won't be able to chew anything…" she said, removing the now red pad upon noticing that the bleeding had stopped.

"Daddy, does the tooth fairy know Santa?" Nila asked, turning herself toward Derek again.

Unsure of what exactly to say, he quickly looked at Angie who was shaking her head yes.

"Um… yes, honey. The tooth fairy and Santa are good friends."

Nila's face contorted into a look of contemplation, her young but sharp mind turning the information around in her brain. "Does that mean the tooth fairy has reindeer too?"

Angie giggled. "Nope, she doesn't need them – she can fly!"

"She can fly?!" Alex exclaimed, sitting up in Angie's lap. Angie nodded her head with a smile and ran her fingers through Alex's hair, straightening his blonde locks.

"Dad, will you stay up with me and wait for the tooth fairy?!" Alex asked with excitement, enlightening his sister to the idea as well.

"No Alex…" Derek replied with a smile. "You can't be awake or she won't come!"

"But maybe if I wake up when she comes I can ask her for more money!"

Derek and Angie burst into laughter at the comment. Most of the time their kids reminded them of each other, but every once in awhile it seemed as though they had a certain amount of influence from their Uncle Tyler.

"Do we have to leave the Tooth Fairy cookies?" Nila asked, her little mind full of neverending questions. Derek smiled as he remembered his mother telling him stories of his constant questioning mind when he was his daughter's age, wondering if his own mother found it as adorable as he did.

"No – the tooth fairy is pretty low maintenance, Nila… All she does is take the tooth and leave the money."

The answer was satisfactory for the young girl, who yawned after a few seconds of silence.

"Alright, looks like it's time for bed…" Derek said, putting Nila on the floor as he stood from his chair.

"Come with mommy Alex, we have to wash out your mouth…" Angie said, placing Alex on the floor as well.

"No mommy – I don't want to wash out my mouth with soap again!" he said, beginning to whine in protest.

Angie just laughed and reached down, lifting the boy into her arms. "I told you…" she said, walking back with him to the kitchen to get some salt water. "You won't have to wash out your mouth with soap again unless you repeat those words Uncle Victor taught you…"

Derek chuckled, attention turning downward when he felt Nila gently tug on his pant leg. He looked down to see a pair of tiny hands reaching in the air towards him, a smile on her tired face. With a smile of his own, Derek reached down and picked her up, grabbing the pajamas he had set out for her off of the couch on their way back to her bedroom. Alex and Angie weren't far behind, the boy clutching his tooth in his hand as he ran into his bedroom and put it under his pillow just as his mother had instructed him. Once both children were dressed and ready for bed, the four of them walked into Derek and Angie's bedroom and crawled into bed together for story time.

It seemed as though things were just settling down for the Stiles family – the kids were nearly asleep, leaving Derek and Angie to look forward to the upcoming "alone" time they would share.

But neither Derek nor Angie could've ever guessed the chain of events the rest of the night had waiting for them, leaving Alex and Nila to find out the tooth fairy wasn't real on the very first night they learned of her.

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**Quote MoonCat and ITB: "Derek is so not getting any..."**

**Will he? How will those kids raise hell?**

**You'll see - next time:D**


	2. Chapter 2

**Hey all - this is the last chapter of this little mini-fic. I had to up the rating just a bit for uh... "adult themes". Nothing bad in the least though.**

**Surprisingly I really don't have much to say today. That NEVER happens...**

**Anyway, hope you like it and all that jazz :D**

**Enjoy! **

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"…The End."

Derek closed the book in his hands, glancing to the side at his wife and children. Fast asleep on a pillow situated in Angie's lap, her mother's fingers gently brushing through her hair, Nila Stiles did not so much as stir, apparently very worn out from her day.

Her twin Alex leaned sleepily against Derek's chest, fighting to stay awake but all the while probing the hole in his bottom row of teeth with his tongue. As soon as Derek finished the story they were reading he turned his blonde head up at his dad.

"Dad? Where's my tooth?" he asked loudly.

"Shh Alex – your sister is sleeping…" Derek whispered, a finger to his lips to signify quiet. He reached over to his nightstand and grabbed the tooth, placing it in his son's hand.

"Can we go put it under my pillow now?" he asked sleepily, rubbing his eyes with his free hand.

"Sure buddy…" Derek said, carefully sliding off the bed. He stood at the edge, sending a smile to Angie who was still curled up with Nila, looking like she was quite tired herself.

Alex stood up on the edge of the bed and Derek lifted him into his arms, carrying him slowly out of his and Angie's bedroom.

"Are you coming?" he asked Angie, turning around in the doorway to look at her.

"Yeah, I'm right behind you…" she whispered, sliding out from underneath her daughter's sleeping form.

Derek turned around and walked forward, hearing a tired whine come from Nila as Angie picked her up, disturbing her slumber.

"Alright Alex…" Derek said, pulling back the covers and gently placing his son into his bed. "Do you still have your tooth?"

"Yep!" he said with a smile, opening his tightly clenched fist and showing the tooth to his father.

Derek smiled, crossing his arms. "Alright – now, put it under your pillow so the tooth fairy can find it, ok?"

Alex turned his attention toward his pillow, grabbing the bright blue fabric and pulling up, his other tiny hand gently placing the tooth on the mattress. He paused for a minute, turning back to look at Derek.

"Like this?" he asked with a small smile. "Will she find it right here?"

"Yep, just like that…" Derek replied.

Alex gently lowered the pillow down until it was on top of the tooth, taking great caution in doing so.

"Okay bud…" Derek said, holding up the blankets as Alex wiggled his legs underneath. He gently pulled the blankets up, tucking in his son on either side of his small body. When situated Alex yawned softly, reaching his arms up into the air shortly after for a hug.

With a smile Derek leaned down and hugged his son, kissing his cheek.

"Remember – you've gotta be asleep or the tooth fairy won't visit… okay?" Derek said, walking over to the corner of the room and turning on Alex's race car nightlight.

Alex's bright green eyes were losing their sparkle quickly, hidden by the eyelids that were so close to shutting for the night. 

"Are you sure I can't stay up and meet her?" he asked with a yawn, leaving Derek to chuckle.

"Nope, you gotta be asleep – and I'm not sure you would make it anyway…" he said to his son, the boy turning to the side and making himself more comfortable, clutching onto his light blue baby blanket.

"Goodnight Alex…" Derek said, finger next to the light switch.

"Goodnight Daddy… I love you." he said with another yawn.

Hearing that never failed to put a smile on Derek's face a mile wide. "Love you too bud – sleep good." he replied, flicking the light switch and closing the door halfway.

Once he walked out of the room, Derek paced a few feet to his left, now standing in the doorway to Nila's room. He smiled and leaned against the doorframe, hands in his pockets as he listened to her quiet breathing. She was fast asleep, curled up with her light purple blanket, brown hair fanned out all over her pillow. He allowed himself to linger momentarily at the sight, turning around and walking away from both of his children's rooms.

With a shudder, Derek walked over to the kitchen and grabbed a small brown lunch bag and a latex glove, his face wrenching in disgust as he walked back into his and Angie's office, seeing the unfortunate mouse that had met its death earlier that night. Biting his lip he pulled back the metal arm of the trap, slipping on his glove as he grabbed the mouse's tail and pulled up, shoving it quickly into the bag. He promptly removed the glove and threw it in the bag as well, resetting the trap before he left the office. In the kitchen he tossed the bag into a bigger garbage bag, tying it shut and walking it over to the side door, tossing it out into the garage to be taken care of later.

With a sigh he entered the house again, eyes shooting wide open when he remembered Angie's promise to him from earlier. Locking the door he broke out into a run, hurdling the couch on his way back to their bedroom. He skidded to a halt just before the door, allowing a moment to compose himself as he pushed the brown door open and peeked his head around the corner.

Derek chuckled softly as he walked in the door the rest of the way. He couldn't help it – the sight was positively adorable.

Dressed in his favorite slinky pink nighty, Angie was in bed waiting for him, just like she had promised. With a smile he gently walked into the room and climbed in bed next to her, pulling her sleeping form close to him and snuggling up against her. While he wasn't gone that long, apparently it was enough for an exhausted Angie to pass right out.

"Mmm.." she groaned gently, feeling him kiss her on the top of her shoulder, close to the base of her neck. "…What took so long?" she murmured quietly, still half asleep.

"Had to take care of that mouse…" he whispered, resting his chin on her shoulder, his cheek pressed against hers. "…and convince Alex not to wake up for the tooth fairy."

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Roughly at the same time his parents were talking about him, Alex's green eyes popped open in his bedroom. An idea in his head he slowly sat up, uncovering himself and tossing his blanket to the edge of his bed. His bare feet hit the ground as he slowly climbed out of bed, padding across the carpet to his bedroom door. Looking out to make sure that his mom and dad weren't around, he walked out quietly, making his way to the laundry room.

He was going to see the tooth fairy, whether he was awake when she came or not.

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"Hmm… he really wants to meet the tooth fairy, huh?" Angie asked with a small smirk and giggle. She took in a big breath and sat up, turning around to face Derek who sat up as well.

"What's up Ang…?" he asked quietly, watching as she tried to rub the sleep out of her face.

"Well…" she said, rolling him onto his back and straddling him with a smile. "…A promise is a promise…"

Derek felt a smile stretch across his lips as Angie bent forward and kissed him, her hands slipping underneath his t-shirt and running over his chest.

Though he was enjoying it immensely the smile faded from his face as Angie sat up, a giant yawn coming from her as she stretched and smiled at him lazily.

"You know what honey?" Derek said, grabbing each of Angie's hands in his. She looked at him with a raised eyebrow, both of her eyes barely open. "Let's wait for another day… okay? You should get some sleep…"

At that statement he sat up, linking his arms around Angie's back, her tired body still straddling his lap.

" No Derek…" she protested, hugging around him. "I just need a minute… I'll be okay…" 

She leaned her head forward, resting her cheek on his shoulder, arms still hugging around him. All he could do was laugh at the sight until he heard her breathing deepen, leading him to realize she had fallen asleep on his shoulder.

With a loving smile and a gentle touch, Derek rolled to the side with Angie still in his grasp, slowly lowering her down until she was resting on her pillow. He sat up and moved next to her, straightening out her legs and covering her with a blanket. With a reach of his arm he turned off the lamp on his nightstand, leaving the room in darkness.

Exhausted himself, Derek noticed how good it felt to crawl into bed, pulling their blankets over himself as well. Looking to the side he noticed that Angie's eyes were barely open, her lips puckered and waiting. 

With a chuckle he leaned over and kissed her once on the lips, and once on the forehead.

"…Are you sure you want to wait?" she asked sleepily. "I mean… just, just give me a minute… I swear, I'm ready to go…"

Derek laughed, propping himself up on his elbow, turned towards her. "Yeah, you sure look like it…" he joked, watching the tiniest of smiles come from her. "Goodnight Ang…"

She had a mild look of protest on her face momentarily, but finally gave up and rolled over until she was snuggled in front of him, their bodies spooned together. Both sighed contently after they got comfortable, drifting off quickly toward sleep until…

"…did you remember to give Alex his tooth fairy money?" Angie asked quietly.

There was a small smile before Derek groaned unhappily, removing his arms from his wife and throwing back the blankets on the bed.

"How much should we give him?" he asked, laying in bed with a hand over his eyes.

"I don't know… a dollar?" Angie said, fluffing her pillow before she laid back down.

Derek sighed and rolled out of bed, grabbing his wallet from the top of his dresser.

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As quietly as possible, Derek tiptoed into his son's room, noticing that he was fast asleep, curled up on his side with his blanket clutched in his arms.

Moving to the far side of the bed in order to have Alex's back to him, Derek surveyed the boy carefully once more, trying to make sure he was fast asleep.

"_Like he would've been able to stay awake..."_ he thought briefly with a smile.

Exhaling, Derek carefully leaned forward and placed his hand on the mattress, sliding it forward and under Alex's pillow, looking for the tooth.

…until a snap was heard, and cold metal encased Derek's fingers…

"..aaAAHHHH!"

Derek immediately dropped the tooth and the dollar, ripping his hand out from underneath the pillow case. Surveying it as best he could without his glasses, he could see what looked like a mousetrap, which was now securely tightened on his hand.

"OW…! OW, OW!" he yelled, trying as best he could to get it off.

"Daddy!" Alex exclaimed, clutching onto his blanket with fear. In the other room Derek could hear Nila crying, calling out for Angie.

Derek tried his best to fumble with the trap, but so many things were happening at one time he found himself unable to concentrate through all of them.

"Hang on guys, its okay… I've gotta find Mommy…" he cried out, still in blinding pain from the trap. "ANGIE!"

When no response was heard, Derek bolted out the door of his son's room, finding his wife quickly as he literally ran into her, both of them crashing heads and falling to the floor.

"Derek? What are you DOING?" she groaned, holding her head.

"Get it off! Get it OFF!" he cried painfully, holding up his hand for her to see.

"Oh my GOD!" she exclaimed, grabbing his arm and pulling it towards her. "Okay, don't move…"

Derek bit his lip hard, trying to hold still as Angie hooked her fingers underneath the metal bar and pulled backward, finally releasing the trap off of him. By this time both their heads were throbbing in addition to Derek's hand, and both Alex and Nila were crying, having been startled by Derek's massive outburst.

"What on earth are you doing with a mousetrap?" Angie asked, helping him to his feet.

"Mommy?" Nila cried out.

"Dad?" Alex asked, his voice shaky.

"Mommy and Daddy will be right there you two…" Angie said, hearing the twins calm considerably upon the sound of her voice. "Daddy just hurt himself and mommy has to fix it."

"Stay there…" Angie instructed, leaving Derek seated on the floor of the hallway right outside the kids bedrooms. She walked into the kitchen and opened the freezer, grabbing an ice pack and wrapping it in a towel.

"Here, hold this on your hand…" she said, helping him to his feet. He surveyed the damage, noting that even though he didn't happen to be wearing glasses, there was a very noticeable purple line across four of his fingers. Derek winced as Angie held the pack against the injury, the pain quickly dulling as the ice took its effect.

"Are you okay?" she asked, her free hand holding her head where they had collided.

"It kills and now I have a headache… but yes, I'm okay. Is your head alright?"

"Yeah, I'm fine… I'll be right back…" Angie said, walking into Nila's room. Derek heard her tuck their daughter back in and give her a kiss goodnight, closing the door halfway again.

"Where did that trap come from?" Angie asked, pulling the pack from Derek's hand and taking a look at his fingers.

"It was under Alex's pillow…" he groaned, the pain still radiating through his hand.

Angie sighed. "Do you want to deal with him or should I?"

"I'll come, but you can do the talking…" Derek said, replacing the ice on his hand.

Derek and Angie walked into Alex's room to see him sitting up, knees pulled into his chest, crying and holding his blanket close to him.

"Are you okay sweetie?" Angie asked, walking over and sitting next to him on his bed. He immediately threw himself into her lap, hugging around her waist.

"Did I hurt Daddy?" Alex asked, face still buried in Angie's shoulder.

"Tell us what you did, Alex." Angie said, rubbing the boy's back.

"I… I wanted, to m-meet the tooth fairy! So I used those things that you use to catch mouses when they ome!" he cried, voice shaking. 

"Alex, you know what we told you about playing with those traps. They're very dangerous – having that under your pillow, you could've really hurt yourself." Angie scolded lightly. "Thankfully you didn't get hurt, but Daddy really did. His hand is very hurt now."

"I-I know, mommy…" he cried, looking back at Derek, more notably at his hand.

"What do you say to Daddy?" Angie asked, still rocking him back and forth.

Alex looked up at Derek's face with tears in his eyes. "I'm sorry I hurted you Daddy!"

Derek smirked. "It's okay bud, I forgive you…" he said, walking forward and sitting on the other edge of the bed. "But, this is why when your mom or I say something, you need to listen to us. When you don't listen is when you get into trouble."

"I know Daddy… I'm sorry…" he said again, still curled up next to Angie.

"I think…" Angie started, brushing Alex's hair away from his forehead. "That you should go and give Daddy a hug and a kiss so he feels better…"

Alex hesitantly moved from Angie's grasp and walked over to Derek, plopping into his lap and hugging around his neck. He then leaned back and planted a tiny kiss on Derek's cheek, reaching his hand up to wipe his cheeks.

"Its okay… everything is okay, alright?" Derek reassured, rubbing Alex's arm to comfort him.

The three sat in silence momentarily, before Alex sat up and looked at Derek.

"Daddy, can I ask a question?"

"Sure. What's up?"

"I put that there to catch the tooth fairy. Why did I catch you?" he asked, inquisitive eyes turned up at his father.

Derek stalled, his eyes wide. He looked up at Angie who had the same expression he did.

"Well, Alex… uh, see.. what happened, is…"

"The tooth fairy was sick today, so she called us and asked us to hold onto your tooth for her." Angie finished, smiling as she saw the look of relief on Derek's face.

"But – do I still get money for it?" he asked, hearing both his parents chuckle.

"What did you do with the money the tooth fairy gave you for Alex's tooth, Daddy?" Angie asked, watching as Derek shrugged.

"I have no idea. It went flying when I got trapped. Should be around here somewhere…" he said, watching Angie bend over the back side of the bed and grab the dollar off of the floor. They both watched as Alex's eyes lit up, his tiny hand reaching out and taking it from his mother. He looked it over and then jumped to the floor, running over to his windowsill where he promptly stuck it in the top of his piggy bank and ran back, hopping into bed.

"Alright, now it's REALLY time for bed…" Angie said, covering him up and handing him his blanket.

"So, what did you learn today?" Derek asked, looking at his son.

"Not to touch the mouse traps, ever." he replied with a serious tone.

"Good boy… get some sleep now, okay?" Derek said, leaning forward and giving Alex a hug and kiss goodnight.

"Goodnight Mommy, night Daddy…" 

"Goodnight Alex." they replied in unison, stepping out of the room and closing the door halfway.

Angie checked in on Nila as Derek walked back to their bedroom, popping a Tylenol on the way.

Shortly after he laid down she collapsed into bed with him.

"Uggh…" he groaned, removing the ice pack and throwing it onto his nightstand. "Everything hurts…" he whined, listening to Angie giggle.

"We sure have some smart kids, you know that?" she said, placing Alex's tooth on her nightstand for the time being.

"Yeah – I'm amazed he thought of something like that…" Derek added, hand still over his face. "Is your head okay?"

"Yep – doesn't even hurt anymore…" she replied, moving closer to him.

"Must be nice…" he muttered, slipping his glasses on and surveying his hand. It was a bit swollen but not bad, the most prominent marking being that of where the bar had clamped down on him.

"My poor baby…" Angie said, rolling towards Derek and kissing his cheek. 

"Eh, I'm alright Ang – just tired and sore now…" he replied, sliding his good arm around her shoulders and pulling her into him. She picked up her head and rested her chin on his chest, staring at him eye to eye.

"Well, I happen to know just the thing to make you feel better…" she said, the provocative smile she gave him from earlier resurfacing as she rose to her knees and pulled off her nightie, leaving him stunned. Leaning forward with a grin a mile wide she kissed him, finally making good on her promise from earlier.

"Are you going to be okay to do this with your hand hurting?" she asked, face buried in his neck as she kissed it repeatedly.

Derek smiled for a minute, realizing that she knew exactly how to make the pain go away.

"Hand…? What hand…?" he asked with a smile.

* * *

**"Hand? What Hand?"**

**Oh Derek, you're so witty...**

**My grandparents have these like, industrial strength mouse traps out in their garage. They're really for rats more than mice, so they're bigger and stronger. Makes sense, right? Well one year one of my uncles got drunk and bet my other uncle it wouldn't hurt to stick his hand there. Wow, I've never heard someone scream like taht before. To be honest, it was hilarious.**

**Anyway, I'm going to bed now. And MoonCat and ITB, you lose - Derek totally got some :D**


End file.
